I Can Hear and Talk (I-Chat) As Asean Sign Language Computer Application for Hearing Impaired

Home , Indonesian Sign Language, Malaysian Sign Language, Singapore Sign Language

ISSN:2321-1156 International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology & Science(IJIRTS) I CAN HEAR AND TALK (I-CHAT) AS ASEAN SIGN LANGUAGE COMPUTER APPLICATION FOR HEARING IMPAIRED

Roessobiyatno, Researcher; Andreas Widiasmono Yanuardi, Senior Expert; Bilpen Nainggolan, Coordinator Group of Researcher PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia

even excluded from using it because of lack of support for ASEAN Sign Language Computer Applica- Abstract : simple interactive text communication, for example. tion for the Hearing Impaired, named I Can Hear and Talk (i-CHAT) is a computer based application which is designed The survey of PUSDATIN in 2010 shows that the popula- to assist people, especially children with hearing impaired tion of disable in Indonesia, in line with WHO calculation problem to master their linguistic capability. The first phase estimated that 10% of Indonesian population (24 millions) is Indonesian & Malaysian (Melayu) Sign Language. This are people with disabilities. We can see the complete data in application leads the user to learn Indonesian & Malaysia the following table: Sign Language and how to arrange affirmative sentences. The establishment of this application is expected to be bene- Table 1. Disable People Population in Indonesia ficial for the Hearing Impaired community, students and teachers of School for Children with Special Needs and also Category Persons useful for their parents, teacher and relatives. The purpose of Visual Impaired 3,474,035 this study is to make an alternative method of learning sign language using computer application. Physical Impaired 3,010,830

Hearing Impaired 2,574,626 Introduction Mental Impaired 1,389,614

ASEAN Sign Language Computer Application for the Chronic Impaired 1,158,012 Hearing Impaired, named I Can Hear and Talk (i-CHAT) is a computer based application which is designed to assist Total 11,580,117 people, especially children with hearing impaired problem to master their linguistic capability. The first phase is Indone- To break down barriers faced by disabled persons in area, sian & Malaysian (Melayu) Sign Language. This application this project has begun with initiatives to take initial step to leads the user to learn Indonesian & Malaysia Sign Lan- promote accessibility & information by using the latest ICT guage and how to arrange affirmative sentences. The estab- technology (Web2.0, Open Source, Android Package and lishment of this application is expected to be beneficial for others), especially for people who are visually or hearing the Hearing Impaired community, students and teachers of impaired. School for Children with Special Needs and also useful for their parents, teacher and relatives. The purpose of this study There was collaboration and a preliminary discussion is to make an alternative methods of learning sign language among team members and all agree to have a research in this using computer application.We ask authors to follow these topic in order to provide a significant contribution in remov- guidelines and make the paper look exactly like this docu- ing barriers in access to information and communication ment. The easiest way to do this is simply to download this gradually. And all researchers are ready to work in accord- template and replace the content with the text of your manu- ance with their professional competencies (ICT, Healthcare, script. Networking, Software Development, Teachers and Students). As ICT products have developed into the many boxes, they have evolved from luxury gadgets for the few into es- sential tools for everyone who wants to participate to the Problem Analysis fullest extent in our Information Society. Nevertheless, because not all potential user groups were considered while There are some factors why the hearing impaired, espe- developing this technology and the services that are based on cially children with hearing impaired must get a special it, a considerable number of people are disadvantaged or treatment:

36 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INNOVATIVE RESEARCH IN TECHNOLOGY & SCIENCE | VOLUME 4, NUMBER 1, JANUARY2016 ISSN:2321-1156 International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology & Science(IJIRTS)  Due to their hearing impairment, children with hear- cation team will be responsible to cover the expenses in- ing impaired are not able to experience their early curred from the maintenance. stage language acquisition period (babbling period),  The hearing impaired children are unable to develop Indonesia and Malaysia are selected as the languages that their language capability, and used as development of i-CHAT Application. This is be-  This will lead to another problem for their communi- cause the structure of Indonesian and Malaysia (Malay) is cation, learning process or education. almost the same. But, nonetheless, the rules of sign language used by both countries are different. Hearing loss will give significant impact to the whole development of children, particularly to their cognitive func- Both Indonesia and Malaysia have two rules of sign lan- tion development. A lot of efforts have been made to under- guage used by the public. In Indonesia there are SIBI (Indo- stand how the Hearing Impaired children think and compre- nesian Broadcasting System) which is generally used for hend something in relation to their cognitive function. educational purposes, while BISINDO (Indonesian Sign Vygotsky (1962) stated that language and thinking are inter- Language) is generally used in the community. related and influence each other. Thinking and language at the early stage are separated and developed parallel until Actually, every region in Indonesia has its own sign lan- children reach the age of 2 years. In this period, thinking and guage that is very different. They have difficulty understand- language becoming integral and influencing each other, later ing the different sign languages. Therefore, the idea to make language can be used to think and what they are thinking can Indonesian sign language, which is abbreviated BISINDO. be reflected through their language. BISINDO expected to be a national sign language as the same as Indonesian in general. BISINDO also has its own The scope of the problem is regional in nature due to the grammar. similar language among the Southeast Asia countries. And the team has already recognized that Indonesia, Malaysia, BISINDO is still new and less known to the public at Brunei and Singapore actually have similar syntaxes. There- large. People are already familiar with SIBI (Indonesian fore, it is possible to address the problem at the regional lev- Broadcasting System). SIBI is engineered systems and the el provided the required resources are available. However, creation of a normal person, instead of people with hearing this project will cope first at providing the application to impaired. As a result, the communities of people with hear- Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore, but it is very ing impaired are confused and could not figure out that there much possible to extend the scope to the regional level. are differences between their natural sign language with the SIBI. Until now still going controversy between the origina- Within this project we plan to invite several ASEAN tors SIBI with the community of people with hearing im- countries which are exposed to Indonesian-Malaysia-Brunei- paired in Indonesia. Singapore Sign Language Computer Application for The Hearing Impaired. We propose to involve relevant institu- People with hearing impaired decided that SIBI only used tions from those countries such as Extraordinary School and for school because of a gesture is not a genuine product of University teachers and practioner. them. This can be seen many people with hearing impaired still wearing their original sign language. BISINDO is a The establishment of this application is expected to be communication system that is practical and effective for the beneficial for the Hearing Impaired community and teachers community of people with hearing impaired in Indonesia of School for Children with Special Needs and also useful being developed by their own. BISINDO used to communi- for their parents, teacher and relatives. cate between individuals as equal as is the case with Indone- sian in general. Indonesian government has formed a cross institutions team to build a Sign Language Computer Application for the With BISINDO, they can express their thoughts and feel- Hearing Impaired. This team comprises individuals from ings freely and express themselves as human beings a digni- TELKOM R&D Center, DG POSTEL, Universitas fied Indonesian citizen in accordance with the philosophy of Pendidikan Indonesia, and School for Children with Special life and human rights. Needs in Bandung, Jakarta and Surabaya. BISINDO developed and disseminated through the organ- ization container Gerkatin (Movement for the Welfare of the The post implementation operational cost for this system People with Hearing Impaired in Indonesia). At this time is relatively small for equipment maintenance therefore in BISINDO center is reviewing the standard formulation, the long run the Indonesian government represented by In- preparation BISINDO dictionaries and textbooks BISINDO. donesian-Malaysia-Brunei-Singapore Sign Language Appli- 37 I CAN HEAR AND TALK (I-CHAT) AS ASEAN SIGN LANGUANGE COMPUTER APPLICATION FOR HEARING IMPAIRED ISSN:2321-1156 International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology & Science(IJIRTS) Similarly with Indonesia, in Malaysia also applies two dif- At the landing page, to acces i-CHAT Indonesia, simply ferent rules of sign language, Kod Hand Malay (Kod Tangan click Indonesian Flag, and to access i-CHAT Malaysia click Bahasa Melayu in Malay) and Malaysian Sign Language Malaysia Flag. At this page we can also access several (BIM). KTBM sign language is formally used by students at information such as introduction of i-CHAT, Forum, and schools. photo gallery.

KTBM is a sign language that follows the rules of the Ma- lay language. Therefore, KTBM used in the process of teaching and learning.

Meanwhile, Malaysian Sign Language (BIM) is the sign language used by the community in Malaysia for daily life. BIM is a sign language rules that do not stress the structure of Malay.

Based on that information, i-CHAT Application developed within the rules of SIBI (Indonesian Broadcasting System) Figure 1. i-CHAT Landing Page and KBTM (Kod Hand Malay) for the purpose of the early development of i-CHAT earmarked for intended as an alter- After choose the language, you will be bring into native ways of learning to help people with hearing impaired registration page. For the first user, you have to fill in the (education). registration form, and activate the link that will be sent to your email. If you have already i-CHAT member, you can go directly login by fill in your email and password. ASEAN i-CHAT Application

Language learning in School for Children with Special Needs is still using conventional methods: 1. Vocabulary introduction is done by bringing objects to the class or use the image. This method is less effective because every time the teacher will introduce a new word to the Hearing Impaired student should find the object in question and then bring it to class. Teachers can also introduce new words to students with hearing impairment to find the pictures, but keep the initiative from the teacher to get a picture that will be introduced. 2. Sign language dictionary used is in hardcopy. This dictionary shows only one picture which represents the sign language. We should read the description carefully. It often happens misunderstanding description written in the dictionary. 3. Children with special needs in hearing often have mistak- Figure 2. Registration Page en in the arrange sentences. Unlike normal people, children with hearing impairment have difficulties in sentence ar- i-CHAT Indonesia consists of 7 modules of learning, rangement. They often make sentence not in appropriate Dictionary, Alphabet Finger Spelling, Gesture for Numbers, order. Writing Sentence Module, Thematic, Exercise & Game, and

Bisindo. Meanwhile, i-CHAT Malaysia comprises four i-CHAT (I Can Hear and Talk) is a computer based appli- modules of learning, Dictionary, Alphabet Finger Spelling, cation which designed to assist people, especially children Gesture for Numbers, and Sentence Writing Module. While with hearing impaired problem to master Malay Language i-CHAT Malaysia consist of the main modules those are (target of the 1st phase). Now, i-CHAT is available in two Dictionary, Alphabet Finger Spelling, Gesture for Numbers, different languages, i-CHAT Indonesia consisting of mod- Writing Sentence Module. ules SIBI and Bisindo, and i-CHAT Malaysia. Each moduls in i-CHAT consist of 2 types of video i.e: sign language video and spelling video.

38 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INNOVATIVE RESEARCH IN TECHNOLOGY & SCIENCE | VOLUME 4, NUMBER 1, JANUARY2016 ISSN:2321-1156 International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology & Science(IJIRTS) A. Dictionary Module

This module has the same function just like common dictionary, but in this application the module will be used to show sign language video or speech reading video of the selected word.

Dictionary module in i-CHAT Indonesia is a digital form of dictionary SIBI (Indonesian Broadcasting System), which consists of 5,000 words sorted by alphabetical order. While the i-CHAT Malaysia consists over 1500 words by using Kod Tangan Bahasa Melayu (KTBM). Figure 5. Gesture for Number Module

D. Writing Sentence Module

Writing Sentence Module is prepared to arrange systematic sentences, where the selection of words are done by typing the desired words in the text area. This module is completed with auto suggestion to enhance and fastening word writing process.

To give the better experience of using this application, each video in dictionary or writing sentence module also show us the web cam video of the user, so the user can train their sign language by imitate the video demonstrate by the i-CHAT model.

Figure 3. Dictionary Module

B. Alphabet Finger Spelling Module

Finger Spelling Module is used for spelling abbreviation, person’s name, and any words that don’t have sign language.

Figure 6. Sentence Writing Module

Figure 4. Alphabet Finger Spelling Module Figure 7. Sign Language Video and User Webcam C. Gesture for Number Module Conclusions and Recommendations

This module is used for learning numeral sign in any type Based on initial assessment, hopefully, the establishment of number, so the students can show the sign of numbers of i-CHAT application is expected to be beneficial for the they want to tell. hearing impaired community and teachers of School for

39 I CAN HEAR AND TALK (I-CHAT) AS ASEAN SIGN LANGUANGE COMPUTER APPLICATION FOR HEARING IMPAIRED ISSN:2321-1156 International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology & Science(IJIRTS) Children with Special Needs and also useful for their par- Hearing Students Through Developed Computer ents, teacher and relatives. Based Application i-CHAT (I Can Hear and Talk),” 2015. Delivery methods that applied in the i-CHAT application [11] Wijayanto, C.P.,”Membangun Aplikasi Pelatihan is very simple. Each module is equipped with two types of Bahasa Isyarat Berbasis Komputer Pada Orang video, video signaling and pronunciation video that is indi- Tunarungu,” 2009. cated to facilitate the user to learn the application of i- CHAT. Biographies In addition, the operation of the application was considered to be very user friendly, because each module is A. ROESSOBIYATNO received his Management Busi- equipped with pictures and instructions for use (tutorial). ness Degree from the Telkom Management Institut, Ban- Users can also download applications i-CHAT offline. dung, Indonesia, in 2010. From 2002 to 2004 he worked as an engineer in the R&D Center of PT Telekomunikasi Indo- With the application of i-CHAT, which in the early initia- nesia (Telkom). He is currently working as a researcher in tion implemented in Indonesian and Malaysia, expected fu- the PT Telkom - Divisi Digital Service. He can be reached ture i-CHAT application can be implemented and impact at [email protected] more widely, especially in the realm of ASEAN in advance. Obviously with the language rules that are tailored to each B. ANDREAS W. YANUARDI received his Telecom- country. For the next project, we propose to build and im- munications Engineering and Management Business Tele- plement i-CHAT for other countries, especially among communications Master’s Degree from Telkom University, ASEAN members and bring this application into mobile Bandung, Indonesia, in 1997 and 2010. He works for R&D application so user can access i-CHAT through their mobile Division of PT Telkom Indonesia since 1997. He is current- gadget. ly working as Senior Expert Customer Experience Manage- ment at PT Telkom - Divisi Digital Service. He can be reached at [email protected] References C. BILPEN NAINGGOLAN received his Business Law [1] Depdiknas, “Kamus Sistem Isyarat Bahasa Indonesia. Master’s Degree from Padjajaran University, Bandung, Jakarta: Direktorat Pembinaan Sekolah Luar Biasa Indonesia, in 2005. He works for R&D Division of PT PUMK Pengembangan Sistem dan Pengelolaan PK Telkom Indonesia since 1997. He is currently working as dan PLK,” 2008. Coordinator Group of Researchers at PT Telkom - Divisi [2] Hallahan, P.D., and Kauffman, M.J., “Exceptional Digital Service. He can be reached at [email protected] Children (Introduction to Special Education),” Fifth Edition, University of Virgina, Prentice-Hall Interna- tional, Inc., 1991. [3] Hernawati, T., “Pengembangan Kemampuan Berbahasa dan Berbicara Anak Tuna Rungu,” Vol- ume7, pp. 101-110, June 2007. [4] Lintangsari, Alis Putri, “Analisis Kebuuhan Pelajar Tunarungu dalam Proses Pembelajaran,” Univeristas Brawijaya, Malang, 2014. [5] Maruli, Adita, “Bisindo Diusulkan sebagai Pengganti SIBI,” Antara News, 2014. [6] Permanarian Somad, Tati Hernawati, “Ortodidaktik Tunarungu,” Depdikbud, Jakarta, 1996. [7] Rusyani, E.,”Bahasa dan Ketunarunguan,” Modul, Jurusan PLB FIP, UPI, Bandung, 2009. [8] Somad P., “Pengembangan Ketrampilan Oral/Aural, manual dan Komtal,” BPG SLB, Provinsi Jawa Barat, Bandung, 2009. [9] Telkom Indonesia,”Proposal Project ASEAN Sign Language Computer Application,” Bandung, 2012. [10] UKM Malaysia,”Project Report: Disseminating The Use of Sign Language Among Deaf and Hard of 40 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INNOVATIVE RESEARCH IN TECHNOLOGY & SCIENCE | VOLUME 4, NUMBER 1, JANUARY2016